Two-Wire Hammertoe Implant Installation Technique
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional hammer toe correction methods, such as pin or rod implants, are cumbersome, difficult to install, and can cause pain due to external protrusions, while temperature-sensitive implants face deployment issues before installation.
Innovation Solution
A surgical method and implant design featuring a threaded and blade portion with a cannulated design, allowing for precise alignment and engagement of bones using a driving adapter, enabling secure fixation without external protrusions and minimizing pain.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Stability of the object's composition
If a pin or rod implant is used to fuse the PIP and DIP joints, then the joints can be stabilized, but the implant prevents the patient from wearing closed toe shoes and can cause pain due to external protrusions
Solution Approach 1:
The implant is inserted into a tunnel created through the bones, nesting the fixation device within the bone structure rather than placing it externally. This allows the implant to stabilize the joint internally while not protruding externally, enabling patients to wear closed toe shoes comfortably.
2Stability of the object's composition
If a threaded member implant is used to couple adjacent bones, then the bones can be fixed together, but the implant is difficult to install in situ and has a tendency to separate
Solution Approach 1:
A tunnel is pre-created through the bones using a guide wire and drill before inserting the implant. This preliminary action simplifies the implantation process by providing a ready-made pathway for the implant, making installation easier and more reliable than attempting to insert threaded members directly into bone.
3Force
If a temperature sensitive nitinol implant is used, then the implant can expand to provide outward force on surrounding bone, but the implant may deploy or expand prior to being installed
Solution Approach 1:
The nitinol implant is pre-loaded into a delivery device in a compressed state before insertion. The delivery device maintains the implant in its compressed configuration during insertion, preventing premature expansion. Only after the implant is properly positioned within the bone tunnel does the implant expand to provide the necessary outward force on the surrounding bone.
4Manufacturing precision
If a cannulated implant is used with two surgical devices, then precise alignment and engagement of bones is achieved, but the installation process becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
A first surgical device (guide wire) is inserted first to establish the tunnel pathway. A second surgical device (drill or implant delivery system) is then inserted through the first device to create the tunnel or deliver the implant. This nested arrangement ensures precise alignment along the same axis while using the first device as a guide for the second, achieving accurate bone alignment through coordinated use of multiple devices.
Data Source
AI summary
A method includes inserting a first surgical device into an exposed first end of a first bone until a trailing end of the first surgical device is disposed adjacent to the first end of the first bone. A second surgical device is inserted into an exposed first end of a second bone while the first surgical device remains disposed within the first bone. A first portion of an implant is advanced into the second bone while being engaged with a passageway defined by the implant such that the implant is guided by the second surgical device. The second surgical device is removed from the second bone and from its engagement with the implant. The first bone is repositioned such that the first surgical device is aligned with the passageway defined by the implant, and the first bone is forced into engagement with a second portion of the implant.